Lost for words

Many minority languages are on the danger list

In the Native American Navajo nation, which sprawls across four states in the American south-west, the native language is dying. Most of its speakers are middle-aged or elderly Although many students take classes in Navajo, the schools are run in English. treet signs, supermarket goods and even their own newspaper are all in English. Not surprisingly, linguists dou!t that any native speakers of Navajo will remain in a hundred years" time. Navajo is far from alone. #alf the world"s $,%&& languages are likely to vanish within two generations that"s one language lost every ten days. Never !efore has the planet"s linguistic diversity shrunk at such a pace. "At the moment, we are heading for a!out three or four languages dominating the world," says Mark 'agel, an evolutionary !iologist at the (niversity of )eading. "It"s a mass e*tinction, and whether we will ever re!ound from the loss is difficult to know" Isolation !reeds linguistic diversity+ as a result, the world is peppered with languages spoken !y only a few people. ,nly -.& languages have more than a million speakers, and at least /,&&& have fewer than -,.&&. It is not necessarily these small languages that are a!out to disappear. Navajo is considered endangered despite having 0.&,&&& speakers. 1hat makes a language endangered is not just the num!er of speakers, !ut how old they are. If it is spoken !y children it is relatively safe. 2he critically endangered languages are those that are only spoken !y the elderly according to Michael 3rauss, director of the Alassk Native 4anguage 5enter, in 6air!anks. 1hy do people reject the language of their parents7 It !egins with a crisis of confidence, when a small community finds itself alongside a larger, wealthier society, says Nicholas ,stler, of 8ritain"s 6oundation for Endangered 4anguages, in 8ath. "'eople lose

Tnh trng mt i ca cc ngn ng Nhi9u ng:n ng; thi<u s= >ang ? danh s@ch nguy cA !B tuyCt chDng. 2Ei Fu=c gia Navajo ngGHi MI !Jn >Ba, mK Fu=c gia nKy trJi dKi L !ang ? 2My Nam nGNc MI, ng:n ng; !Jn >Ba >ang !B mOt >iPsuy giJmPsuy tKn. #Qu hRt nh;ng ngGHi nSi tiRng Navajo nKy >9u lK ngGHi trung tuTi hoUc ngGHi giK. MUc dV rOt nhi9u sinh viWn tham dX c@c lNp hYc tEi Navajo nhGng c@c trGHng nKy hiCu >9u >GZc >i9u hKnhPhoEt >[ng !\ng tiRng anh. 5@c !Jng !i<u trWn >GHng ph=, hKng hSa siWu thB vK th]m ch^ !@o >Ba phGAng tOt cJ >9u !\ng tiRng anh. 5_ng chJ mOy ngEc nhiWn g`,c@c nhK ng:n ng; hYc ngH r\ng !Ot ka ngGHi nSi thb tiRng Navajo !Jn >Ba nKo trong s= >S sc duy tr` trong khoJng thHi gian 0&& ndm. 2iRng Navajo cen lMu mNi >[c l]p. M[t nfa trong s= $%&& ng:n ng;P/L&& ng:n ng; trWn thR giNi cS khJ ndng sc !iRn mOt trong - thR hC n;a g >i9u nKy tGAng >GAng cb m[t ng:n ng; mOt >i trong mGHi ngKyPcb mGHi ngKy mOt >i m[t ng:n ng;.2rGNc >My chGa thng cS t^nh >a dEng cDa ng:n ng; ? hKnh tinh nKy lEi thu nhiP !B giJm vNi m[t t=c >[ nhG v]y.j kKo thHi >i<m hiCn tEi, chlng ta >Mng hGNng tNi - hoUc / ng:n ng; hiCn >ang th=ng trB thR giNi nKyj, theo Mark 'agel, m[t nhK chuyWn nghiWn cbu tiRn hSa sinh hYc thu[c trGHng >Ei hYc )eading.j mMy lK sX tuyCt chDng hKng loEtP sX mOt ng:n ng; diCn r[ng vK liCu chlng ta cS th< hni phocPkh:i phoc >GZc ng:n ng; mOt >i nKy kh:ng lK >i9u khS cS th< !iRt >GZcj X c@ch !iCt tEo ra t^nh >a dEng cDa ng:n ng; + kRt FuJ lK, thR giNi hiCn nay hiCn >ang pn\mqrJi rrc c@c ng:n ng;, mK >GZc nSi chs !?i m[t ^t ngGHi. 5hs cS -.& ng:n ng; cS hAn 0 triCu ngGHi nSi thb tiRng >S vK ^t nhOt /&&&& ngGHi cS chGa >Qy -.&&.5_ng kh:ng htn nh;ng ng:n ng; nhi th` sc !iRn mOt.Navajo >GZc coi lK ng:n ng; cS khJ ndng !B tuyCt diCt mUc dV >ang hiCn cS hAn 0.&&&& nSi thb tiRng >S.mi9u tEo cho m[t ng:n ngG !B >e dYa kh:ng phJi lK s= lGZng ngGHi nSi mK lK >[ tuTi cDa ngGHi >S lK !ao nhiWu. kK nRu nhG ng:n ngG nKy >GZc nSi !?i tru em th` ng:n ng; >S tGAng >=i kh@ an toKn. Nh;ng ng:n ng; cS nguy cA !B >e dYa nghiWm trYng lK nh;ng ng:n ng; chs >GZc nSi !?i ngGHi giK, theo nhG :ng M3, gi@m >=c cDa 2rung tMm ng:n ng; !Jn >Ba Alassk, ? 6. 2Ei sao con ngGHi lEi th !i ng:n ng; cDa ch^nh cha mv hY 7. kiCc nKy !rt >Qu th viejec khDng hoJng leng tin khi m[t c[ng >nng nhi tX nh]n thOy >bng !Wn cEnh m[t *w h[i giKu cS hAn vK cx

NativePneitivP+ !Jn >Ba prawl + n\m GHn,n\m trGHn,trGHn !e A !eautiful female student is sprawling on the ta!le. )un something+ >i9u hKnh c@i g` >S Eg+ )un company Are all in something+ tOt cJ >9u !\ng c@i g`. Any Ns+ !Ot cb c@i g` trong s= >S 6ar from sth + cen lMu mNi >Et c@i g` >S yenowreitown Never ..!eforePin my life+ 2rGNc >My chGa thng cS + mJo trEng >Jo trZ. hrink-shrank-shruk + thu nhi,co ngSt, giJm eg+ gz co + log shrink #ead for + hGNng tNi Mass{N + N hKng loEt eg mass-killer , massteaching 8reed + 'epper + hEt tiWu pnq, tung rrcpvq 8e a!out to do sth| c lKm g` 'retty}rather}enough}re latively+ kh@ Minute + p nq + phlt , di~n tJ - adj + nhanh chSng,tEm thHi ,vernight + Fua >Wm padjq, nhanh chSng p advq )eject to do sth khdng khdng th ch=i sc lKm g` )efuse to do sth+ th ch=i lKm g` eny doing + !@c !i >w lKm g` 5risis of sth + khDng hoJng c@i g` eg + crisis of currency + khDng hoJng ti9n tC,crisis of sychology +khDng hoJng tinh thQn 4ose faith in something + mOt ni9n tin vKo c@i g` 8e induced into sth | l:i cu=n vKo g`

faith in their culture," he says. "1hen the ne*t generation reaches their teens, they might not want to !e induced into the old traditions." 2he change is not always voluntary. uite often, governments try to kill off a minority language !y !anning its use in pu!lic or discouraging its use in schools, all to promote national unity2he former ( policy of running Indian reservation schools in English, for e*ample, effectively put languages such as Navajo on the danger list. 8ut alikoko Mufwene, who chairs the 4inguistics department at the (niversity of 5hicago, argues that the deadliest weapon is not government policy !ut economic glo!alisation. "Native Americans have not lost pride in their language, !ut they have had to adapt to socio-economic pressures," he says. "2hey cannot refuse to speak English if most commercial activity is in English." 8ut are languages worth saving7 At the very least, there is a loss of data for the study of languages and their evolution, which relies on comparisons !etween languages, !oth living and dead. 1hen an unwritten and unrecorded language disappears, it is lost to science. 4anguage is also intimately !ound up with culture, so it may !e difficult to preserve one without the other. "If a person shifts from Navajo to English, they lose something," Mufwene says. "Moreover, the loss of diversity may also deprive us of different ways of looking at the world," says 'agel. 2here is mounting evidence that learning a language produces physiological changes in the !rain. "our !rain and mine are different from the !rain of someone who speaks 6rench, for instance," 'agel says, and this could affect our thoughts and perceptions. "2he patterns and connections we make among various concepts may !e structured !y the linguistic ha!its of our community" o despite linguists" !est efforts, many languages will disappear over the ne*t century 8ut a growing interest in cultural identity may prevent the direst predictions from coming true, "2he key to fostering diversity is for people to learn their ancestral tongue, as well

lNn, theo Nicholass ,stler thu[c phMn viCn ng:n ng; cS nguy cA tuyCt chDng ? nGNc Anh.j MYi ngGHi mOt ni9m tin vKo vdn hSa, :ng cho !iRt . 3hi thR hC trong tGAng lai >Rn >[ tuTi vB thKnh niWn, cS lc hY c_ng kh:ng mu=n !B hOp dn vKo trong nh;ng truy9n th=ng c_j. kiCc thay >Ti nKy thGHng kh:ng mang t^nh tX nguyCn. kh@ thGHng *uyWn, c@c ch^nh phD t`m c@ch loEi !i m[t ng:n ng; thi<u s= !\ng c@ch cOm sf dong ng:n ng; >S trGNc c:ng chlng hoUc kh:ng khuyRn kh^ch sf dong ng:n ng; >S ? trong c@c trGHng hYc >< >9 cao t^nh >oKn kRt Fu=c gia.5h^nh s@ch trGNc >My cDa nGNc MI trong viCc >i9u hKnh c@c trGHng !Jo tnn tiRng Anh->iWng !\ng tiRng Anh, v^ do nhG, >w >y rOt nhanh ng:n ng; nhG Navajo vKo trong danh s@ch tuyCn chDng.NhGng :ng M, ngGHi gi; chbc chD tBch khoa Ng:n ng; hYc thu[c trGHng >Ei hYc 5hicago l]p lu]n r\ng k_ khi nguy hi<m nhMtPchRt ngGHi nhOt kh:ng phJi lK ch^nh s@ch cDa ch^nh phD mK lK toKn cOu hea kinh tR.j NgGHi mI !Jn *b tX hKo v ng:n ng; cDa m`nh nhGng hY phJi th^ch nghi vNi nh;ng @p lXc kinh tR *w h[ij:ng cho !iRt.j NgGHi ta kh:ng th< th ch=i nSi tiRng anh nRu hQu hRt hoEt d[ng thGAng mEi >9u !\ng tiRng anh . NhGng c@c ng:n ng; nKy cS >ang >< cbu vwn hay ko 7, 5h^ ^t cS sX mOt >i d; liCu >=i vNi viCc nghiWn cbu vK sX ph@t tri<n cDa ng:n ng; >S dXa vKo viCc so s@nh c@c ng:n ng; >ang tnn tEi vK >ang mOt >i. 3hi m[t ng:n ng; kh:ng h9 dGZc ghi chp vK c_ng kh:ng ? dGNi dEng vdn viRt th` >S lK sX mOt m@t cDa khoa hYc. Ng:n ng; grn m]t thiRt vNi vdn hSa v` ng:n ng; khS cS th< !Jo tnn mK kh:ng cS vdn hSa, NRu m[t ngGHi chuy<n th tiRng Navajo sang tiRng Anh, hY chrc chrn mOt >i >:i >i9uj M nSi .j #An n;a, viCc mOt >i t^nh >a dEng tGNc >oEt >i khii chlng ta c@c c@ch thbc nh`n thR giNi, :ng 'agel nSi.j NgKy cKng tdng c@c !\ng chGng cho thOy r\ng viCc hYc 0 ng:n ng; tEo ra nh;ng thay >Ti v9 tMm l ? nwo ![j.Nwo ![ cDa !En vK cDa t:i >9u kh@c !iCt so vNi nwo ![ cDa !Ot cb ai, ngGHi nSi tiWng 'h@p lK m[t v^ do,j 'agel nSi, vK >i9u nKy cS th< Jnh hG?ng >Rn tG duy vK sX hi<u !iRt cDa chlng ta.Nh;ng m: h`nh vK m=i Fuan hC chlng ta *@c l]p trong rOt nhi9u Fuan niCm kh@c nhau cS lc >w >GZc cOu trlc hSa nhH thSi Fuen sf dong ng:n ng; trong c[ng >nng cDa chlng ta. k` v]y, cho dV nh;ng nz lXc t=i >a cDa c@c nhK ng:n ng;, rOt nhi9u ng:n ng; sc !iRn mOt trong thR k tiRp theo. NhGng cS mzi Fuan tMm ngKy cKng lNn v9 !Jn src vdn hSa cS lc hEn chR nh;ng dX >o@n khDng khiRp nKy tr? thKnh sX th]t. mi<m mOu ch=t trong viCc thlc >y t^nh >a dEng ng:n

Minority PmainoritiP ydm gi; ch^nh trong >Qu vK chEy >Rn chz kh@c >9u sf dong nS lKm the hoUc it tEo >GZc mEch reason. 2ake pride in } lose pride in + mOt tX hKoPni9m tin vKo g` Adapt to sth + th^ch nghi c@i g`. mCm thWm o >< kWt hZp social-economic - socio-economic + 'olio-economic- ch^nh trB kinh tR 1oth doing sth+ >@ng lKm g` 1orth as { s= + trB gi@ !ao nhiWu 2o !e worthed something + >@nh gi@ c@i g` )eply on + doa vKo epend on + tVy thu[c vKo 8ound up with sth + grn vNi c@i g` 2G?ng tGZng th >S vK tay chp th !Jng nhN trong >Qu ra. Intimate + m]t thiWt hift sth from sth + chuy<n th c@i g` sang c@i g` eprive s!d of sth + tGNc >oEt ai c@i g` Mount + tdng, >snh 'erception + kh@i niCm, sX hi<u !iRt 'erceptive+ understand + hi<u 5ultural identity + !Jn src vdn hSa 'revent s!d from doing sth| #En chR ai lKm g`.ngdn ch? ai lKm g` 8e for + v` c@i g`,0 phGAng ph@p t@ch cMu Ancestor + tT tiWn ominant+ nTi tr[i, th=ng trB, A degree of + 0 lGZng, m[t mbc >[ 8e{k- + >GZc,!B

as the dominant language," says oug 1halen, founder and president oi the Endangered 4anguage 6und in New #aven, 5onnecticut. "Most oi these languages will not survive without a large degree of !ilingual-ism," he says. In New ealand, classes for children have slowed the erosion of Maori and rekindled interest in the language. A similar approach in #awaii has produced a!out %,&&& new speakers of 'olynesian languages in the past few years. In 5alifornia, "apprentice" programmes have provided life support to several indigenous languages. kolunteer "apprentices" pair up with one of the last living speakers of a Native American tongue to learn a traditional skill such as !asket weaving, with instruction e*clusively in the endangered language. After a!out /&& hours of training they are generally sufficiently fluent to transmit the language to the ne*t generation. 8ut Mufwene says that preventing a language dying out is not the same as giving it new life !y using it every day "'reserving a language is more like preserving fruits in a jar,"he says. #owever, preservation can !ring a language !ack from the dead. 2here are e*amples of languages that have survived in written form and then !een revived !y later generations. 8ut a written form is essential for this, so the mere possi!ility of revival has led many speakers of endangered languages to develop systems of writing where none e*isted !efore.

ng; lK >=i vNi c[ng >nng ngGHi !Jn *b cQn hYc tiRng mv >u cDa tT tiWn m`nh c_ng nhG ng:n ng; th=ng trB, theo nhG :ng w, ngGHi *@c l]p kiWm chD tBch cDa u Ng:n ng; cS khJ ndng tuyCt chDng ? tEi New #aven !ang 5onnecticut.j #Qu hRt c@c ng:n ng; nKy kh:ng tnn tEi nRu kh:ng cS m[t mbc >[ song ngb lNn, :ng cho !iRt. N, c@c lNp dKnh cho tru em >w lKm ch]m viCc suy tho@i tiRng Maori vK nhem nhSm m=i Fuan tMm v9 ng:n ng; nKy. 5S m[t c@ch tiRp c]n tGAng tX ? #awaii >w tEo ra khoJng %&&& ngGHi nSi thb tiRng 'olynesian mNi trong m[t vKi ndm trGNc. 5alifornia chGAng tr`nh hYc viCcP viCc hYc viCc >w tEo ra sG hz trZ trong cu[c s=ng >=i vNi m[t s= ng:n ng; !Jn >Ba. Nh;ng ngGHi t`nh nguyCn viWn thXc t]p thGHng >GZc ghp cUp vNi m[t trong nh;ng ngGHi nSi thb tiRng M !Jn *b cen sSt lEi >< hYc m[t k ndng truy9n th=ng nhG viCc >an rT cVng vNi viCc giNi thiCu rOt >Uc !iCt >=i vNi ng:n ng; cS nguy cA tuyCt chDng nKy. au khoJng /&& giH >Ko tEo, nSi chung hY hoKn toKn >D khJ ndng tr:i chJy >< truy9n ng:n ng; nKy cho thR hC tiRp theo. NhGng :ng Mulfwene nSi r\ng viCc hEn chR m[t ng:n ng; kh:ng !B mOt >i c_ng kh:ng gi=ng nhG tEo cho ng:n ng; >S m[t sbc s=ng mNi !\ng c@ch sf dong ng:n ng; >S hKng ngKy.j 8Jo tnn m[t ng:n ng; th` gi=ng nhG !Jo vC hoa FuJ trong !`nhj 2uy nhiWn, sX !Jo tnn nKy cS th< khiRn m[t ng:n ng; hni sinh. NgoKi ra cen cS nhi9u v^ do v9 ng:n ng; tnn tEi dGNi dEng vdn viRt mK >GZc kh:i phoc trong m[t vKi thR hC kR tiRp.NhGng dEng vdn viRt c_ng rOt cQn thiRt viCc !Jo tnn, v` thR khJ ndng duy nhOt trong viCc kh:i phoc khiWn cho nhi9u ngGHi nSi thb tiRng cS nguy cA !B tuyCt chDng ph@t tri<n thKnh nhi9u hC th=ng ch; viRt nAi mK hC th=ng ch; viRt nKy chGa thng tnn tEi trGNc >My.

Erosion + sX *Si men )ekindle st + nhem nhSm p lfaq c@i g` lWn Apprentice+ hYc viCc eg carpenter apprentice + thZ m[c hYc viCc. Indigenous + !n *b, ngGHi !Jn *b - mang t^nh chOt ngGHi nhi9u hAn Native + mang t^nh chOt !Jn >Ba - liWn Fuan >Ba >i<m nhi9u hAn 'air up with + cUp >:i vNi 8argain e*change + hKng >Ti hKng E*clusive + ngoEi lC, >Uc !iCt ufficient + >D padjq 2ransmit sth to s!dPs!d sth+ truy9n c@i g` cho ai 2v station + >Ki truy9n h`nh 8ring sth !ack from | mang c@i g` Fuay tr? v9 th >Mu, phoc hni th g` 8ring sth !ack from+ cJi tf hoKn sinh c@i g`, hni sinh c@i g` 'ossi!ile Luyn chc cc t l 1 bi ton kh Chc ti a + hYc thu[c leng g ko nh`n vKo vdn !Jn >Yc ra vVn vot Chc ti thiu + !iRt hRt c@c com th vK cOu trlc. Chc va va + liRc nh`n m[t >oEn th` phoc hni >GZc y nguyWn >oEn vdn !Jn >S